"You are that new guard" - Demetrious Johnson likens Kade Ruotolo with BJJ to MMA pioneers 'Jacare', Demian Maia
ONE flyweight MMA world champion Demetrious Johnson has been around fighting long enough to acknowledge a game-changing talent when he sees one. As such, 'Mighty Mouse' believes Kade Ruotolo could be the next big thing in mixed martial arts after the greatness he achieved in BJJ and submission grappling.
The 21-year-old prodigy, of course, dazzled in his MMA debut at ONE 167, where he choked out Blake Cooper inside the first round.
Johnson, who interviewed Ruotolo on an episode of his podcast, MightyCast, even likened the Atos standout to some of the best BJJ practitioners to don the four-ounce gloves.
'DJ' said Ruotolo reminded him of his BJJ coach and longtime ONE bantamweight MMA world champion Bibiano Fernandes, along with former UFC stars Ronaldo 'Jacare' Souza and Demian Maia:
"Not in today's age [will you see pure BJJ artists succeed in MMA]. When you go back, when Bibiano Fernandes jumped into the scene, when 'Jacare' and Demian Maia jumped into the scene, they were destroying people with their grappling and they got better with their hands. Then MMA caught up with them and they started having problems."
Moreover, Johnson explained why he believes Kade Ruotolo could be even better if he continues to sharpen his overall game, adding:
"But you know, you are that new guard of here's a pure Brazilian jiu-jitsu guy coming into mixed martial arts. Your sweeps are great, your jiu-jitsu is absolutely amazing. I don't think you'll have a hard time."
Watch the interview in its entirety:
Kade Ruotolo teaches Demetrious Johnson the secret to tighter chokes
Apart from picking each other's brains during the interview, Demetrious Johnson and Kade Ruotolo also shared the mats.
The fellow ONE world champions grappled to their hearts' content and exchanged techniques afterward.
Ruotolo, the lightweight submission grappling king, even taught 'Mighty Mouse' the best way to secure suffocating chokeholds. He revealed:
"A lot of people squeeze with their arms and they forget [to use] their back and how much force they can get from there."
Kade Ruotolo will return to grappling at ONE 168: Denver, where he'll defend his 26 pounds of gold against Mikey Musumeci.
That blockbuster event will air live in US primetime on September 6 from Ball Arena, free for Prime Video subscribers in North America.